William Johnson

A life saved at Mare Island: William Johnson's Medal of Honor

William Johnson earned the Medal of Honor not on a battlefield but through an act of lifesaving courage at a United States Navy yard. On 14 November 1879, while serving as a cooper aboard USS Adams at Mare Island Navy Yard in California, he rescued civilian workman Daniel W. Kloppen from drowning.

Born in 1855 on the Caribbean island of Saint Vincent, Johnson entered the historical record through his service in the United States Navy. His naval rating, Cooper, was a specialized occupation of the nineteenth-century fleet. By November 1879, he was serving aboard USS Adams, a vessel assigned to the Pacific Station.

The ship had arrived in San Francisco in July 1879 and entered Mare Island Navy Yard for an extended period of repairs. It was during this interval that Johnson performed the rescue for which he would be remembered.

The Navy formally recognized his bravery under General Order No. 326, dated 18 October 1884. His Medal of Honor was awarded for peacetime heroism, demonstrating that exceptional courage in naval service was not confined to combat.

Johnson died in Washington, D.C., on 20 May 1903 and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery. His documented rescue remains a lasting example of individual courage in the service of saving another person's life.

Medal of Honor citation

Serving on board the U.S.S. Adams at the Navy Yard, Mare Island, Cal., 14 November 1879, Johnson rescued Daniel W. Kloppen, a workman, from drowning.